#BTCMiningDifficultyDrop

Bitcoin mining difficulty recently experienced a significant drop of approximately 11.16% in early February 2026, marking the largest negative adjustment since China’s mining ban in 2021. This "reset" lowered the difficulty from over 141 trillion to around 125.86 trillion, easing the competition for miners who remain online.

The primary driver for this collapse was a "perfect storm" of economic and environmental factors. First, Bitcoin's price plummeted from its late 2025 all-time highs of ~$126,000 to the $60,000–$70,000 range, making operations unprofitable for many less efficient miners. Simultaneously, severe winter storms in the United States, particularly in mining hubs like Texas, forced major operators to power down to protect energy grids. Additionally, some mining companies have begun pivoting their hardware toward Artificial Intelligence (AI) computing, which currently offers more stable returns than crypto mining. This capitulation of weaker miners is often seen by analysts as a potential market bottom signal, as it historically precedes a stabilization in price.